Month: July 2022

Jason Aldean kicks off his Rock N' Roll Cowboy Tour tonight in Scranton, Pennsylvania, beginning an extensive string of dates that will give him a chance to introduce fans to the live version of his latest double album, Macon, Georgia.

That project — his 10th — is named after the singer's hometown Macon, which Jason says had a massive impact on his eventual career as a country star.

“It all started there,” he recounts. “…That's where I learned to play guitar and where I learned to sing and where I played bars for the first time.”

At the time, Jason wasn't even old enough to drink, but he fell in with a group of older musicians who taught him everything he knows about jam sessions and playing late nights in bars on small stages.

“When I was a 15, 16 year old kid, guys — you know, other musicians in that town — kinda took me under their wing and would take me to these after-hours bars and have jam sessions,” he recounts. “When I had to be at school the next day. So I was getting home at three in the morning.”

Jason may have lost a little sleep, but he learned important lessons about his chosen career path during those long nights out.

“It was just kind of where I learned to be a musician. It's just where it all started for me,” he says, explaining that it felt only fitting to mark that early memory in the title of his landmark 10th album. “It was me kind of paying tribute to where it all started from.”

Jason just released his latest country radio single, “That's What Tequila Does.” The song comes off the Macon half of his double album.

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Mickey Guyton joins LeAnn Rimes and percussionist Sheila E. for “The Wild,” a new song off LeAnn's forthcoming new album, god's work.

The Recording Academy has officially set a date for the 65th annual GRAMMY Awards ceremony. It'll take place February 5, 2023 in Los Angeles.

Hillary Scott of country trio Lady A joins Christian group For King + Country for a new duet rendition of “For God is With Us.” The original version of the song was a number-one hit for the duo.

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Fans of Walker Hayes and his family just might see some familiar faces in the music video for his just-released new song, “Y'all Life.”

“Y'all Life” is a celebration of life in the south, so it's only fitting that the music video revolves around scenes of football, church and more. Walker's family members — including his six kids — are co-stars in the clip.

Also making an appearance in the music video is Craig Allen Cooper, Walker's close friend and neighbor, who's also the subject of his song, “Craig.” The song recounts how Craig once extended a helping hand to Walker at a low point in his life; In the video, Craig plays a church pastor.

Walker also recently co-wrote a book with Craig, called Glad You're Here, about their story, friendship and faith.

In addition to all the fun cameos in the clip, some eagle-eyed fans might notice another Easter egg. At one point in the clip, while Walker's driving his Ford Bronco around a race track, he casts his eyes toward some nearby bleachers and a banner for insurance company Progressive.

It's unclear what the banner means, but it's probably not an accident: Walker recently retweeted a cryptic teaser post Flo from Progressive's Twitter account, which features images of a beard, mustache, glasses, an ice cream cone and an image of Flo.

“What does it all mean, y'all?” the tweet reads, tagging Walker in the caption, too.

“Y'all Life” is Walker's latest country radio single. It came out on Friday.

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Keith Urban recently added Tyler Hubbard to the bill of his The Speed of Now World Tour for this fall, but the two artists are doing more than just sharing a stage — they've also been writing songs together.

“We got to write together a few months ago for the first time,” Keith tells Today's Country Radio With Kelleigh Bannen on Apple Music. “And we wrote a song that he ended up recording that I'm very excited about.”

Tyler, who broke into the country scene as one half of the currently-defunct star duo Florida Georgia Line, has been rolling out material for his upcoming solo album — and the song he wrote with Keith just might be on its track list.

Keith, a veteran songwriter who's worked with people in all corners of the music business, says that he's loved getting familiar with Tyler's approach to making music.

“I was curious about his process and his way of approaching things,” he said. “And I was really impressed with his compositional skills as a writer. He's really, really good.”

Both artists will have plenty of new material to debut when they hit the road together in a few months. Keith recently released his new song “Brown Eyes Baby,” his first new music since releasing his The Speed of Now Part 1 album.

Meanwhile, Tyler has released a handful of solo material, including the just-out “Way Home,” which arrived on Friday.

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Just two days after officially announcing her next album, Subject to Change, Kelsea Ballerini is off to the races — er, the rodeo — with a new song.

“Love is a Cowboy” is a tender ballad about the wild ride that is falling in love, comparing the euphoric freedom and the potential of getting hurt to a ride with a free-wheeling cowboy.

“Makes your heart feel like wild horses that you chase / Trying to catch it's like trying to tame the Wild, Wild West / And when I'm with him, it's like ropin' the wind / Love is a cowboy,” Kelsea sings in the chorus.

As she was teasing her new album, Kelsea promised a return to more traditional country sounds; She makes good on that promise in her latest song, which features ample Western imagery, vivid lyrical storytelling and even a fiddle line.

In its subject matter, “Love is a Cowboy” has some common ground with “Heartfirst,” Kelsea's lead single off Subject to Change. Both songs embrace love with both arms while also acknowledging the fact that falling in love means letting go of control.

Subject to Change is due out September 23. It's available for pre-order now.

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